Checking up

Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times

A man calling himself Divine the Great, left, argues with LAPD Officer Gary Verge outside his tattoo parlor on Crenshaw Boulevard. Capturing the exchange on cellphones is Sean Douglas, second from left, and Jahkese Allen Pircer. Verge, who works out of the 77th Street Division, has been with the department since 1989.

A man calling himself Divine the Great, left, argues with LAPD Officer Gary Verge outside his tattoo parlor on Crenshaw Boulevard. Capturing the exchange on cellphones is Sean Douglas, second from left, and Jahkese Allen Pircer. Verge, who works out of the 77th Street Division, has been with the department since 1989. (Mel Melcon / Los Angeles Times)

A man calling himself Divine the Great, left, argues with LAPD Officer Gary Verge outside his tattoo parlor on Crenshaw Boulevard. Capturing the exchange on cellphones is Sean Douglas, second from left, and Jahkese Allen Pircer. Verge, who works out of the 77th Street Division, has been with the department since 1989.